Electronic Gadget Green

Last fall, I watched in horror as 60 Minutes reported about the toxic wasteland our obsession with the newest, obsoletely planned gadgets creates in China and other NIMBY (not in my back yard) places. I vowed not to upgrade anything that didn't require upgrading, the story upset me that much.

I learned I am eligible for a free upgrade on my cell phone.

The temptation is huge. My phone is text challenged, or perhaps the operator is? Those shiny whistles and bells really are tempting me. I consider the ramifications of upgrading my phone as I wonder... what will happen to my old one?

I believe I've found a doubly green solution.

Their mission statement:

Gazelle wants to change the world – one cell phone, one laptop, one iPod at a time. It is our purpose – and our promise – to provide a practical, rewarding way for people to finally rid themselves of all those old cell phones, digital cameras, and gaming systems that they no longer use, but can't seem to find a way to let go of. Too often when people think of recycling, they rush straight to smashing things into bits for parts. We believe that reuse should always come first. If your GPS unit still works, why not keep it in circulation AND get paid for it? If reusing isn't in the cards, then let us recycle that vintage camcorder. We think of it as ReCommerce. Yeah, we're green.Green for you with dollars in your pocket. Green for the environment with fewer electronics being trashed. It's good to Gazelle. That's our promise.

This site will buy/sell your old electronic devices. They will even mail you a postage paid envelope. It operates much the way Ebay does. The average customer sends in 2 items per box. I bet every reader here has an electronic gadget they either have stuffed into a drawer or thrown out. (gasp). Today, I'm challenging my readers to find their old unused electronics and do something worthwhile with them. Perhaps organize a fundraiser? Perhaps donate? Do something useful that doesn't hurt the environment with them. Get cash, even.

Let me know if you decide to embrace this challenge, I'm excited to learn the results!

Lunch Packing Green

Summer vacation is officially over as signaled by the need to pack my child a sack lunch for band camp today. Lunch packing is a universally accepted way to economize, but it also can be a great way to reduce and reuse without adding trampling our environment in the process.

When I was growing up, my mother never met a piece of aluminum foil or resealable bag she couldn't wash and reuse. When I stocked my first apartment, I joked that I was amazed to learn aluminum foil came on rolls! Personally, I'm not a huge fan of even using those items in the first place. I do have a ready supply of resealable containers, including a collection empty delicatessen containers, that I pack food in. I do not buy individually packaged snacks, but rather measure an appropriate serving into one of my reusable containers.

I invested in a few decent insulated containers as well. When my daughter's princess thermos was too babyish for her to use, I covered it with contact paper to a more neutral appearance. There was nothing wrong with the thermos, just the design on it. This is a challenge I issue to all my readers. Before disposing of a perfectly good household item simply as a fashion choice, consider how to change it to something that will be used.

All these items can be washed and reused time and time again. The insulated lunch boxes lasted over 4 years, although this year they will need to be replaced.

One last hint/request. Never, ever, ever use juice boxes. The composition of juice boxes makes them virtually impossible to recycle:

Juice boxes are typically made up of six layers of paper (24%), polyethylene (70%), and aluminum foil (6%). The paper provides stiffness and strength and gives the package its brick shape. Polyethylene serves two purposes. On the inner most layer, it forms the seal that makes the package liquid tight. On the exterior, it provides a protective coating that keeps the package dry and provides a printing surface for nutritional and marketing information. The aluminum foil forms a barrier against light and oxygen, eliminating the need for refrigeration or preservatives to prevent spoilage. The straws are made of plastic and wrapped in cellophone. Multipacks contain six or more juice boxes, and are often wrapped in a cardboard sleeve that displays the name of the product and other specifications, then shrink-wrapped in plastic.

Give me a thermos or reusable sports bottle.

Greensmart is one company that has made a true commitment to the environment. They manufacture all their products from recycled materials.

Packing a lunch that doesn't pack our landfills is a challenge to embrace as we get ready to go back to school.

Programmable Thermostat Green

As I sit on vacation, looking out at the ocean, I succumb to the temptation to post a green lifestyle hint. Perhaps my enjoyment of the offerings of our earth is the motivation to wanting to preserve our majestic planet. Nonetheless, as I wandered around our vacation rental, I was pleased to see the programmable thermostats.

If you haven't installed one, now is the time. A programmable thermostat ensures that your home will only be heated or cooled when you are there to need it. We set our thermostat to shift several times daily based on our patterns. We lower the temperature at night in the winter, when we're covered with warm blankets and lower it during the day when we're not home. We only raise it when we're home. In the summer, we follow the opposite pattern when cooling the home. We raise it when we're not home, and raise it when we're sleeping and not moving around getting heated. We also make a habit of drawing the shades so the sun works in harmony with our temperature controls and we utilize ceiling fans to keep the air moving efficiently.

Our programmable thermostat saves us a great deal of money on utilities as well as takes less from the environment to run our furnace or air conditioner. It's a simple investment that pays in several shades of green.

Now back to my regularly scheduled ocean views. Stay comfortable!